The True Story of Two Men, Their Extraordinary Journey, and the Discovery of the Lost Civilization of the MayaAuthor: William CarlsenPublisher: William Morrow PaperbacksISBN: 9780062407405Category: Biography & AutobiographyPage: 544View: 6296

The extraordinary true story of the rediscovery of the Mayan civilization: In the tradition of The Lost City of Z and Empire of Ice, comes the forgotten tale of 19th century American John Lloyd Stephens’s quest to uncover and understand the ancient world’s most advanced civilization amid the jungles of Central America. Imagine The Lost City of Z, except the fabled lost jungle civilization really was found—an “Egypt in the Americas” in which 1,500-year-old pyramids and temples were hidden in impenetrable tropical forests, along with evidence of astonishingly sophisticated art, writing, science, and culture. In 1839, when John Lloyd Stephens, a dashing U.S. special ambassador to Central America, and Frederick Catherwood, an acclaimed British architect and draftsman, set out into the unexplored jungles of the Yucatan, Charles Darwin was aboard the H.M.S. Beagle, the Bible was the basic template of history, and most people believed the world was less than 6,000 years old. Deep in the jungles, they stumbled upon the wondrous ruins of the Mayan civilization—an astonishing find that would change western understanding of human history. In Jungle of Stone, William Carlsen uncovers the rich history of the ruins as he follows Stephens and Catherwood’s journey through present day Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. Drawing upon Stephens’s journals and Cather’s magnificent illustrations—which became the bestselling book Incidents of Travel in Yucatan—Carlsen artfully tells the enthralling story of two great voyagers and the world they discovered.

The Extraordinary Journey of John L. Stephens and Frederick Catherwood, and the Discovery of the Lost Civilization of the MayaAuthor: William CarlsenPublisher: HarperCollinsISBN: 0062407422Category: Biography & AutobiographyPage: 544View: 5158

“Thrilling. …A captivating history of two men who dramatically changed their contemporaries’ view of the past.” — Kirkus (starred review) In 1839 rumors of extraordinary yet baffling stone ruins buried within the unmapped jungles of Central America reached two of the world’s most intrepid travelers. Seized by the reports, American diplomat John Lloyd Stephens and British artist Frederick Catherwood—each already celebrated for their adventures in Egypt, the Holy Land, Greece, and Rome—sailed together out of New York Harbor on an expedition into the forbidding rainforests of present-day Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico. What they found would re-write the West’s understanding of human history. In the tradition of Lost City of Z and In the Kingdom of Ice, former San Francisco Chronicle journalist and Pulitzer Prize finalist William Carlsen reveals the unforgettable true story of the discovery of the ancient Maya. Enduring disease, war, and the torments of nature and terrain, Stephens and Catherwood meticulously uncovered and documented the remains of an astonishing civilization that had flourished in the Americas at the same time as classic Greece and Rome—and had been its rival in art, architecture, and power. Their remarkable book about the experience, written by Stephens and illustrated by Catherwood, became a sensation, hailed by Edgar Allen Poe as “perhaps the most interesting book of travel ever published” and recognized today as the birth of American archeology. Most importantly, Stephens and Catherwood were the first to grasp the significance of the Maya remains, recognizing that their antiquity and sophistication overturned the West’s assumptions about the development of civilization. By the time of the flowering of classical Greece (400 B.C.), the Maya were already constructing pyramids and temples around central plazas. Within a few hundred years the structures took on a monumental scale that required millions of man-hours of labor, technical and organizational expertise. Over the next millennium dozens of city-states evolved, each governed by powerful lords, some with populations larger than any city in Europe at the time, and connected by road-like causeways of crushed stone. The Maya developed a cohesive, unified cosmology, an array of common gods, a creation story, and a shared artistic and architectural vision. They created dazzling stucco and stone monuments and bas reliefs, sculpting figures and hieroglyphs with refined artistic skill. At their peak, an estimated ten million people occupied the Maya’s heartland on the Yucatan Peninsula, a region where only half a million now live. And yet, by the time the Spanish reached the “New World,” the classic-era Maya had all but disappeared; they would remain a mystery for the next three hundred years. Today, the tables are turned: the Maya are justly famous, if sometimes misunderstood, while Stephens and Catherwood have been all but forgotten. Based on Carlsen’s rigorous research and his own 1,500-mile journey throughout the Yucatan and Central America, Jungle of Stone is equally a thrilling adventure narrative and a revelatory work of history that corrects our understanding of the Maya and the two remarkable men who set out in 1839 to find them.

Through pen-and ink drawings and watercolours, this book recount the 19th century epic of the art of illustration and the rediscovery of history's great Maya civilization. Frederick Catherwood produced artwork-depicting views of ancient monuments with great accuracy. Although he was trained as an architect, his real passion in life was art, particularly portraying ancient cultures. He was a man who loved to travel which was a significant influence on his art. At the age of 40, Catherwood accompanied a successful writer named John Lloyd Stephens to Central America. What they found on their trip amazed them: wonderfully majestic but deserted cities. The ruins in these cities were the inspiration of Catherwood's art, created by using a camera lucida (an optic device that preceded the invention of photography) to aid him in his drawings. The artwork that Catherwood produced was vivid and intriguing and became a best seller. Central America was not the only place that Catherwood went to get inspiration for his artwork. Before devoting himself to the discovery of the Mayas, he disguised himself as a.

"John Lloyd Stephens, a New York lawyer and best-selling author, and Frederick Catherwood, a London architect and renowned topographical artist, endured many life-threatening obstacles in a determined effort that led to the discovery of nearly fifty forgotten Mayan cities buried deep in the jungles of Central America and Mexico. "--Provided by publisher.

A story of two young women set in the years following the Mexican Revolution in Merida, Yucatan, one of the wealthiest cities in the world at the time. Amanda Diaz is from the "divine caste," a small group of families of European descent who dominate the politics and economy of the region. Amanda's lifelong friend, Carmen, is from the opposite end of the social spectrum, a Mayan Indian who is the daughter of one of the Diaz family servants. Against the true historical background of rebellion and assassination in the unstable country, the whipping of Carmen by a Diaz neighbor exposes the sheltered existence of the two women and drives them apart.

Though Mayan culture has existed for more than 3,500 years, researchers and historians have only recently started unlocking some of the mysteries behind this Central American society. Thoroughly researched text guides readers through the gripping history of the Maya, including a detailed description of Maya culture. The main text is supplemented with engaging sidebars, full-color photographs, historical images, and expert, annotated analysis from leading scholars.

Humorist Jerry Zezima has always had an empty head. Now that his two daughters have flown the coop, he and his wife have an empty nest. The girls aren't completely out of the house, of course, because a lot of their stuff is still there. Written with warmth and hilarity, "The Empty Nest Chronicles" is sure to appeal to parents who miss their kids but now have a chance to rediscover each other, to recall what life was like BC (Before Children), and to ask the eternal empty-nester question: Are we having fun yet? Praise for "The Empty Nest Chronicles" " 'The Empty Nest Chronicles' is brimming with laughs." — Bill Geist, "CBS News Sunday Morning" correspondent "Reading 'The Empty Nest Chronicles' is like having a hilarious conversation with the nicest guy you'll ever meet. Self-deprecating, gentle, and really funny." — W. Bruce Cameron, New York Times bestselling author of "8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter," "A Dog's Purpose," and "A Dog's Journey"

Lost cities in the jungle and towering temple pyramids form only a small part of Mayan culture. This fascinating people achieved the landmarks of an advanced civilisation - such as a highly developed writing system and densely populated cities - in the classical period (AD 300-600), earning them a place among the greatest civilisations in the world. However, this period represents just one phase in the history of the Mayan culture, which extends over thousands of years. Our knowledge of Mayan life has increased dramatically in recent decades. As a result, specialists from a wide range of disciplines have contributed to this book in order to represent all of the latest research on the Maya. The contributions included in this magnificent volume range from the origins of Mayan culture all the way to today, giving insight into everyday life and religion as well as the artistic accomplishments and intellectual abilities of this important culture.

NAMED A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2017#1 New York Times and #1 Wall Street Journal bestseller! A five-hundred-year-old legend. An ancient curse. A stunning medical mystery. And a pioneering journey into the unknown heart of the world's densest jungle. Since the days of conquistador Hernán Cortés, rumors have circulated about a lost city of immense wealth hidden somewhere in the Honduran interior, called the White City or the Lost City of the Monkey God. Indigenous tribes speak of ancestors who fled there to escape the Spanish invaders, and they warn that anyone who enters this sacred city will fall ill and die. In 1940, swashbuckling journalist Theodore Morde returned from the rainforest with hundreds of artifacts and an electrifying story of having found the Lost City of the Monkey God-but then committed suicide without revealing its location. Three quarters of a century later, bestselling author Doug Preston joined a team of scientists on a groundbreaking new quest. In 2012 he climbed aboard a rickety, single-engine plane carrying the machine that would change everything: lidar, a highly advanced, classified technology that could map the terrain under the densest rainforest canopy. In an unexplored valley ringed by steep mountains, that flight revealed the unmistakable image of a sprawling metropolis, tantalizing evidence of not just an undiscovered city but an enigmatic, lost civilization. Venturing into this raw, treacherous, but breathtakingly beautiful wilderness to confirm the discovery, Preston and the team battled torrential rains, quickmud, disease-carrying insects, jaguars, and deadly snakes. But it wasn't until they returned that tragedy struck: Preston and others found they had contracted in the ruins a horrifying, sometimes lethal-and incurable-disease. Suspenseful and shocking, filled with colorful history, hair-raising adventure, and dramatic twists of fortune, THE LOST CITY OF THE MONKEY GOD is the absolutely true, eyewitness account of one of the great discoveries of the twenty-first century.

Coe and Houston update this classic account of the New Worlds greatest ancient civilization, incorporating the most recent research in a fast-changing field. New discoveries of spectacular stucco sculptures at El Zotz and Holmul reveal surprising aspects of Maya royalty; the Classic Maya themselves can be understood as occupants of royal courts, full of Machiavellian intrigue yet operating in close communion with gods and cosmos. Just-discovered texts at Xultun show a strong concern with astronomy and numerology, as well as evidence of lost books. Other finds include the discovery in an underwater cavern of the earliest known occupant of the region, the Hoyo Negro girl, and new evidence for the first architecture at Ceibal. The Maya highlights the vitality of current scholarship into this brilliant civilization.

The early people who inhabited Florida developed diverse, hardy, and complex societies. Dramatic archaeological advances in methods of excavation, preservation, and analysis are bringing to light a wealth of new information about these people and their lifestyles. Florida's First People combines contemporary archaeology, the writings of early European explorers, and replication experiments to paint a vivid picture of the state's original inhabitants. It allows us to share in their daily tasks, examine their artistic and ceremonial artifacts, follow them in the hunt, and experience their environment.

Color Your Own Van Gogh presents you with thirty intricate illustrations of the most captivating Van Gogh paintings from the collection of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. Each detailed drawing will inspire your creative side as you color in between the lines of such classic works as Gauguin's Chair, Sunflowers, or A Pair of Leather Clogs. Thumbnails of the original paintings in full color allow you to match your colors to the originals, or you can draw on your inspiration to add your own colorful flourish.

The renowned anthropologist author of the best-selling Yanomamö describes his controversial life-long research among the Yanomamö Indians, describing how his beliefs in the evolutionary advantages of their inherent violence have been systematically rejected by politically correct scientists. 50,000 first printing.

"This dramatic memoir recaptures William Seabrook's experiences during an eight-month stay at a Westchester mental hospital in the early 1930s. Seabrook, who was a renowned journalist, voluntarily committed himself for acute alcoholism. His account offers an honest, self-critical look at addiction and treatment in the days before Alcoholics Anonymous and other modern programs. William Seabrook is most famous for introducing the word Zombie to Western culture"--

The lyrical and lifelike art works of Mayan culture have given archaeologists and historians the key to ancient Mayan history. This eBook describes social, religious, and artistic life, from their beginning until their destruction by the Spanish conquerors in the sixteenth century. In more recent years, teams of scientists have methodically explored the jungles and plains and have unearthed a wealth of information. But, unlike Egypt, Babylon, or Greece, where archaeologists have searched widely, the land of the Maya is still largely untouched in comparison. There are over five thousand ruins in Mexico alone, most of which have not been disturbed by the archaeologists' spades. There are perhaps hundreds more ruins hidden in the forests, their fallen stones covering a thousand secrets. The news of this little bit of gold was later to spur other greedy Spaniards on to further exploration and to the eventual conquest of three great American civilizations, the Incas, the Aztecs, and the Maya. The Mayan people were short. The average height of a Mayan man was five feet one inch; that of a woman, four feet eight inches. Their hair was straight and black, while the colour of their skin was coppery or brown. Mayan men did not shave. What little hair they had on their faces, they pulled out. The men wore their hair in braids, wound around the top of their heads, with a queue hanging down the back. The women wore their hair long, and arranged it in various ways.

Acquired by the United States from Spain in 1898, Puerto Rico has a peculiar status among Latin American and Caribbean countries. As a Commonwealth, the island enjoys limited autonomy over local matters, but the U.S. has dominated it militarily, politically, and economically for much of its recent history. Though they are U.S. citizens, Puerto Ricans do not have their own voting representatives in Congress and cannot vote in presidential elections (although they are able to participate in the primaries). The island's status is a topic of perennial debate, both within and beyond its shores. In recent months its colossal public debt has sparked an economic crisis that has catapulted it onto the national stage and intensified the exodus to the U.S., bringing to the fore many of the unresolved remnants of its colonial history. Puerto Rico: What Everyone Needs to Know� provides a succinct, authoritative introduction to the Island's rich history, culture, politics, and economy. The book begins with a historical overview of Puerto Rico during the Spanish colonial period (1493-1898). It then focuses on the first five decades of the U.S. colonial regime, particularly its efforts to control local, political, and economic institutions as well as to "Americanize" the Island's culture and language. Jorge Duany delves into the demographic, economic, political, and cultural features of contemporary Puerto Rico-the inner workings of the Commonwealth government and the island's relationship to the United States. Lastly, the book explores the massive population displacement that has characterized Puerto Rico since the mid-20th century. Despite their ongoing colonial dilemma, Jorge Duany argues that Puerto Ricans display a strong national identity as a Spanish-speaking, Afro-Hispanic-Caribbean nation. While a popular tourist destination, few beyond its shores are familiar with its complex history and diverse culture. Duany takes on the task of educating readers on the most important facets of the unique, troubled, but much beloved isla del encanto.